READING ON TV
"My eyes are moist at every episode of this program. I like the words, the emotion and the recitation, all of them are beautiful," reads a typical online comment on the show Readers that debuted on China Central Television (CCTV) on Feb. 18.
In the TV show, celebrities, like writer Wang Meng and China's first astronaut Yang Liwei, are asked to read a couple of paragraphs from their favorite books that chime with a certain theme, for example home, companionship, tears and so on.
"All the readers are well-known in their own fields," said host Dong Qing, "but the show brings out their emotional side."
Readers has been a very big hit. The online version of the first episode has been watched more than eight million times on streaming service iQIYI.
Ordinary people can also take part. "Readers' booths" have been set up by the program in major cities where people can go to be recorded reading for three minutes. Some people queuing for a booth in Shanghai on March 5 waited for nine hours to have their turn.
On April 16, a visually impaired girl named Zheng Xiaoke recited a poem in a booth in Shenzhen, expressing her gratitude to those who have cared for and loved her.
According to the crew, every reader is recorded and videoed, and those who give the most touching recitations will appear in future shows.
